Behind the Eyes
by Naodrith
Summary: Sequel to "Fallen." Ryou's picking up the pieces of his shattered life. Well, sort of. Things are very weird in the wake of what (probably) happened in Egypt, and they're about to get a whole lot weirder.
1. This is Your Life

Chapter One: This is Your Life  
  
June 2  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
This can't be real.  
  
I mean it. It can't be real. This is some kind of dream. Maybe it's a hallucination generated by Sathaugula, or something. Maybe we're still in Egypt. Maybe I'm still dying.  
  
But this isn't real.  
  
I mean, look at the evidence: Atenna likes me now, she used to hate me. And I've somehow acquired the ability to finish my homework in under two hours. I told Yugi, but he says it's just because I haven't got you-know-who around to keep me occupied, and then he almost started crying, so I didn't mention the other stuff.  
  
You'd think that if I'd returned from Egypt, I wouldn't be unscathed.  
  
I should have scars on my wrists, where Sathaugula cut me. I should have /something/. Instead, nothing.  
  
I told Yugi that, too, later on, and he just thinks it's because this isn't my body. But it /has/ to be mine. I think I'd know if I wasn't me.  
  
I /am/ me.  
  
I /have/ to be.  
  
This is not my life, though.  
  
This can't be real.  
  
--  
  
June 3  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
And if this were real, then Joey wouldn't be going out with Tea. He would be with Mai. I know that. She knows that, too. I wish she would talk to me, because I think she would believe me, that this isn't real. But she won't. I haven't even seen her. Yugi says that it would be too painful for her. I told him he's no idea what pain is, when every time I look in the mirror I see someone who isn't me, but he just got all teary and mumbled something about understanding.  
  
Not real, not real, not real. We're still in Egypt. This is a hallucination.  
  
--  
  
June 4  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
And, you know, if this were really real, why would I be writing this? I never used to have a journal. Why would I want one now? I just remember that I did want one. In fact, it's hard to remember anything from those first weeks after we came back.  
  
I feel sorry for Kaiba and Mokuba. I mean, I didn't have anyone left behind but Atenna, and she fended for herself while we were "gone." But they're high-profile, and they've had to deal with a lot. I imagine it will be like this when we really get back, too.  
  
That's another thing. Why hasn't anyone really wondered why we disappeared for over a month? I appreciate that Yugi's grandfather made excuses, but /really/. Can't my mind generate something more realistic than this?  
  
--  
  
June 5  
  
And now I'm just worried that I'm suddenly going to drop dead. It was horrible to be dying, but it's more horrible to know that I am and I can't do anything about it because I'm stuck /here/, in this stupid reality that would be perfect if only...  
  
--  
  
June 6  
  
I want to go home.  
  
--  
  
June 8  
  
Atenna slept in my bed last night. Something is definitely up. I wish I could convince everyone else.  
  
You know, I never thought that I would /want/ to go back to Egypt.  
  
--  
  
June 11  
  
I remember hating him. I remember him hating me. There's another proof for you. I remember he said "I love you." My yami would never say anything like that, not to me. Never to me.  
  
--  
  
Later  
  
What if he meant it?  
  
--  
  
Later  
  
This is stupid. I'm not getting anywhere. There's got to be some way to wake up. Even dying is better than this. I don't want to live like this. I think I'd go a bit insane if I didn't have the fact that this isn't real to cling to.  
  
--  
  
Later  
  
/Someone wake me up/.  
  
-----  
  
Yesterday is a wrinkle on your forehead  
  
Yesterday is a promise that you've broken  
  
Don't close your eyes, don't close your eyes  
  
This is your life  
  
And today is all you've got now  
  
And today is all you'll ever have  
  
Don't close your eyes, don't close your eyes  
  
-----  
  
June 12  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
I don't know why I write to you as if you're a person. It's silly, I suppose, but maybe everyone needs something that they can tell everything to.  
  
Father called last night. I was a bit of a wreck, didn't want to talk to him. He's coming home.  
  
I was so mean to you-know-who last time Father came home.  
  
Perhaps when we get back to the real reality, I shall let them meet. Such an important part of my life shouldn't be a secret.  
  
--  
  
June 14  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
I am an emotional trainwreck waiting to happen, according to Yami, who's apparently been reading a bit too much bad fiction in the aftermath of what he believes happened in Egypt.  
  
Everyone is so concerned for me. They think I should be more upset. I /am/ upset. Wouldn't you be, if you were trapped in your own mind with no way to escape?  
  
--  
  
June 15  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
I tried to clean my room today. I'm afraid I've been letting it go since our "return." There are things under the bed that are alive, but which were not alive when they got there. Atenna killed one, and has dragged it off to wherever she goes when she isn't following me.  
  
I finally got all my school stuff together and stowed it away. It's a relief to finally /really/ realize that I don't have to go back for months.  
  
Never, in fact. It won't have any adverse affects on my life, because this isn't my life.  
  
--  
  
June 18  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
Shitshitshit. Father will be here tomorrow and Atenna's got into the fridge and there is chocolate syrup and spoiling milk /everywhere/.  
  
Time to call in reinforcements, I think.  
  
--  
  
Later  
  
It's almost midnight. Yami Yugi, Yugi, Joey, and Tristan were here for awhile, helping me to clean. Tristan and Joey even went into you-know-who's old room and tidied up a bit. Everyone kept shooting me significant glances. I don't think I can be expected to be much more of an emotional trainwreck than I am just now.  
  
I hate when Father comes to visit.  
  
It used to be tolerable, at least, with you-know-who's ramblings always in my head. Many a time have I burst out laughing for no reason, considerably startling my father.  
  
I don't laugh much anymore.  
  
Father's plane will not get in until late afternoon. Perhaps I can arrange a day at an amusement park or something?  
  
--  
  
June 29  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
Father's gone, finally. He seems pleased with the way I've been "running the household." Some welfare lady dropped by as well. The government is always so worried about a teenager living by himself. I do quite well, however, and I've always got money enough, and apparently I seem happy.  
  
I am /not/ an emotional trainwreck.  
  
If I have to survive in this reality much longer, though, I shall be very vexed. /What/ is taking them so long?  
  
-----  
  
This is your life, are you who you want to be?  
  
This is your life, are you who you want to be?  
  
This is your life, is it everything you dreamed that it would be  
  
When the world was younger  
  
And you had everything to lose?  
  
-----  
  
July 2  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
Isis Ishtar has contacted us from Egypt, and has "humbly requested our presence." I informed Yugi that I have no wish to go to modern-day Egypt, I'd just like to get back to ancient Egypt. He seems a bit worried about me.  
  
Also, there is definitely something going on with Joey and Yugi. I didn't notice before - I've been a bit wrapped up in myself - but they don't seem like best friends anymore. They don't talk as much. They don't laugh as much. They give each other these strange looks.  
  
Maybe they remember Egypt, too, and something happened to them there?  
  
God, if I ever get my hands on that demon...it's screwed our lives up royally. Even if they aren't the real lives.  
  
--  
  
July 3  
  
Oh God.  
  
--  
  
July 8  
  
I keep meaning to write, and I never have enough time.  
  
I'm in the hospital. Not me, specifically. I mean I'm /at/ the hospital.  
  
Mai's had a nervous breakdown of some kind. They say Seto Kaiba has, too, but he's in a special ward for the extremely wealthy. And Joey's confessed he's been seeing things.  
  
Maybe this reality is disintegrating.  
  
It's about time.  
  
I am worried, though. I mean, how could I not be? I could be next.  
  
--  
  
July 9  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
Eight people went to ancient Egypt. One of them doesn't exist here, and the remaining six, besides me, are now in an insane asylum.  
  
We aren't crazy.  
  
I'd know if I was crazy.  
  
Mostly I'm scared they'll remember that I disappeared, too, and lock me up.  
  
I'm not crazy.  
  
I'm just the only one who knows this isn't real.  
  
--  
  
July 10  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
Isis called me long distance. She insists that she must speak to me in person. I told her to come here, and she said she can't get away, and will I please just catch a plane to Egypt? The rest of the conversation went something like this:  
  
Me: I really doubt that. I've six friends in the hospital, if you'll recall.  
  
Isis: Precisely. I think I can help you.  
  
Me: Then help by coming /here/. I'm not leaving.  
  
Isis: Why? Why won't you simply come?  
  
Me: Because I don't want to.  
  
Isis: The world hangs in the balance!  
  
Me: Yes, that's always the excuse with you people, isn't it?  
  
I'm never this sarcastic in the real reality.  
  
I must say, this hallucination is growing progressively darker. Perhaps my subconscious is preparing me for death by sending me hurtling toward the end of the world.  
  
Again.  
  
--  
  
July 12  
  
I don't want to be here anymore.  
  
--  
  
I want him back I want him back I want him back  
  
--  
  
Please go away  
  
-----  
  
Yesterday is a kid in the corner  
  
Yesterday is dead and over  
  
This is your life, are you who you want to be?  
  
This is your life, are you who you want to be?  
  
This is your life, is it everything you dreamed that it would be  
  
When the world was younger  
  
And you had everything to lose?  
  
-----  
  
July 15  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
Forgive my shortness these past days. I've been under siege.  
  
You see, apparently someone made the connection, and several doctors came to collect me. I told them, calmly and rationally, that I was /not/ crazy and would like it a lot if I could stay home, please. They attempted to break down the door. Atenna and I took refuge in the cellar, and climbed out a window. I've been at Tea's, but they keep coming around asking about me, and I don't like letting her see this. You never know, she might take it into her head to read it.  
  
Not crazy, not crazy, not crazy.  
  
Unless, you know, it's crazy to be the only one who knows that this isn't real.  
  
--  
  
I mean, wouldn't I know if he were dead?  
  
--  
  
I miss him.  
  
--  
  
This is so stupid. I don't even know what day it is. It's so hard to keep track of time. Tea comes and goes, she has to act natural, and I keep falling asleep and forgetting to ask her what day it is.  
  
This situation is dreadful. Here I sit, rotting away with only Atenna as a companion, knowing that everything in this reality has gone wrong and in Egypt, I'm dying.  
  
I don't think I want to die.  
  
--  
  
I want to go home.  
  
--  
  
Which home do I mean? My house, or my reality?  
  
--  
  
I have to talk to someone. Someone who was there. Unfortunately, they're unavailable.  
  
--  
  
Well, if I wasn't in trouble before, I am now.  
  
-----  
  
Don't close your eyes, don't close your eyes  
  
Don't close your eyes, don't close your eyes  
  
This is your life, are you who you want to be?  
  
This is your life, are you who you want to be?  
  
Who you want to be  
  
Is it everything you dreamed that it would be  
  
When the world was younger and you had everything to lose  
  
You had everything to lose  
  
-----  
  
Dear Journal,  
  
I've been writing shortly for some time now, and I think it's time to actually fulfill the purpose of this journal: recording accurately everything that occurs.  
  
Yesterday, I had the idea that there were /not/ only eight of us there. The Millennium Items were there, too, and I remember them talking. I was a bit distraught at the time, and of course that whole thing was a hallucination, but I figure that if this is a continuation of that hallucination, it should still hold true.  
  
I broke into Joey's house and took the Scale.  
  
Serenity caught me just when I was on my way out.  
  
Serenity: Everyone's looking for you. They say you're mentally unstable.  
  
Me: (sounding, I suppose, a bit hysterical, due to sudden realization of the breaking-and-entering charge) I'm not crazy!  
  
Serenity: (reaching for 'phone) That's a Millennium Item, isn't it? Your...evil side...was collecting them.  
  
Me: Oh, /God/, Serenity. I'm not trying to take over the world! In fact, I suspect I'm actually trying to save it!  
  
Serenity: You /suspect/?  
  
Me: It's kind of up in the air whether the world's actually in danger or not.  
  
Serenity: Am I in danger?  
  
Me: Put the 'phone down, Serenity.  
  
Serenity: (beginning to dial) Hold on, Ryou, I want to help you.  
  
Me: I'd like to help me, too.  
  
I convinced her to trust me, I think. Anyway, she didn't dial the police while I was there. We talked, and I think she might believe me, that this isn't real.  
  
It must be very tough, facing the fact that what you thought was real really wasn't.  
  
-----  
  
Author's Note: First off, don't worry. The rest of the story will not be in journal format.  
  
I can't promise that it won't be weird in other ways, because, you know, it's me, but...  
  
The rest of the chapters won't be so short, either. This was rather a special case.  
  
The song is "This is Your Life," by Switchfoot.  
  
A bit unconventional: this story will not have a single soundtrack. Rather, I've chosen songs from a few CDs I quite like. You'll have to wait and see on this one, I'm afraid.  
  
Next Chapter: Who Knows. Several things happen to confuse Ryou. Several things happen to make other people question their sanity. Several doctors are extremely irritating. Several Millennium Items are insufferable gits. 


	2. Who Knows

Chapter Two: Who Knows

Mai really, /really/ hated the padded room, and said so.

"Why do you think I'd try to hurt myself?"

Doctor Ishika glanced up from his clipboard. "Miss Valentine, it's a simple precaution, in case your illness progresses."

"I'm not ill." She shook her head. "This is crazy. I don't belong here."

The doctor glanced over his notes. "You were brought here because of the persistent delusion that you spent a month in ancient Egypt, fighting monsters and saving the world."

"It was more like a week, actually. Time was screwed up, and...never mind." She blinked at him. "Doctor, I don't see why this so-called 'delusion' is dangerous. I'm not crazy. Surely you've heard of what happened in Duelist Kingdom - "

"Maximilion Pegasus," Ishika interrupted. "You were in his tournament. He was insane, kidnapped a few people."

She grit her teeth. "Right. It was a bit more than that, but - what about Battle City?"

"A homicidal egomaniac with an Egyptian fixation, Miss Valentine. You yourself were badly injured, I believe?"

"Sir," she snapped, "you know perfectly well that those events were both a lot more than lunatics. It was all over the news - "

"The virtual reality systems malfunctioned, apparently."

Mai considered, and decided that informing him that the virtual reality of Duel Monsters had become /really/ real would get her nowhere. "Yes," she said helplessly. "Anyway - I don't know what my point is."

"Perhaps your mind was damaged during your run-ins with this gaming system, Miss Valentine? It would certainly make sense, as those who appear to share the delusion have also been exposed."

"My mind isn't damaged."

"I would call delusions damaging."

Mai put her hand over her eyes in frustration. Every damn day, the same old conversation. "I'm /not/ crazy."

Doctor Ishika sat back in the chair he had dragged into her cell. "What can you tell me of Ryou Bakura?"

She shrugged. "He's a friend."

"A bit more than a friend, I think."

Her head snapped up. "/What/?"

--

There was no one in Yugi's bedroom, which was why no one witnessed the Millennium Puzzle when it began to glow.

Eventually, it tipped over, onto its base.

After awhile, a sharp blue flame coruscated out of the pyramid's tip.

A miscalculation caused the Puzzle to wobble, and flop off of the dresser where it had been left.

A small voice said, "Ouch."

All in all, it was probably not the most memorable thing it could have said.

--

No one noticed the girl when she stepped off of the airplane. She was just another tourist in a pretty pink sundress, shading her eyes against the harsh Egyptian sun.

What /was/ strange was the way she looked at things like vending machines and taxis as if she'd never seen them before.

She took a room at a hotel in Cairo, and walked through the bazaar, eyes gleaming as she assessed the situation.

Her footsteps led her to the Egyptian Museum. She headed straight for the information desk.

"I'm looking for Malik Ishtar," she informed the employee.

"I know an Isis Ishtar," the man volunteered.

The girl smiled like a wolf and purred like a cat. "She'll do. Tell me where to find her, please?"

-----

Why do you look so familiar?

I could swear that I have seen your face before

I think I like that you seem sincere

I think I'd like to get to know you a little bit more

-----

Tristan frowned. "I still don't understand /why/ they think Yugi and Joey and the others are crazy."

Ryou, who was sitting cross-legged on Tea's bed, glanced up from his scrutiny of the Millennium Scale. "Because they were heard talking about what happened in Egypt, and you've got to admit that people who aren't accustomed to magic as we are might find that a bit strange."

"Well, yeah, but they're /not/. You'd think all those psychiatrists would be able to tell who's crazy and who's not."

"It doesn't matter, anyway," Ryou said calmly. "Nothing that happens here is really real. I think, though, that if we can save the world, then it might snap back to normal. And if this thing doesn't start /talking/ - " He glared at the Scale - "then we're definitely going to have to contact Isis."

Tristan nodded, on principal. He had no idea what Ryou was talking about.

Sometimes he really worried about that boy.

--

"We have photographs," Doctor Ishika said, "of you and Ryou Bakura. I think it's safe to say he's your boyfriend?"

"Uh, no," Mai said, and shoved away the memories that came unbidden to the front of her mind. "We're /friends/. That's all we've ever been."

"Ryou has been evading the police for nearly a week now, Miss Valentine. We want to help him. If you have any information that could lead to his - "

"Capture?" she suggested. "Imprisonment? Doctor, do I /sound/ crazy to you? Because I'm not. Really."

"Severe delusions, Miss Valentine?"

"I'm not deluded." She avoided his gaze and glanced around the room. Nope; still padded, still boring. "Who put you up to this, anyway? We've got a lot of enemies. Who are you /really/ working for?"

"Paranoia," he said, writing it down.

"How does that translate to paranoia? It's a rational question!"

Doctor Ishika checked his watch, and stood up, nodding to one of the orderlies near the door. "Time for your medication, Miss Valentine." He strode out of the room.

"Don't you think it's weird that you keep putting me on anti-delusion meds and the delusions don't go away?" she shouted after him.

--

"I think I should warn you," Joey said as the door opened, "I can swear like a bandit, I have a very bad temper, and anything I don't like will be considered torture and treated as such."

"I'm sensing some hostility here, Joseph," Doctor Ishika said, going for his pen.

"No shit." Joey leaned against the wall and crossed his arms. "What have you done with the others?"

"They are safe, and being treated for their illnesses."

"How do you know which others I mean?" Joey countered.

Doctor Ishika consulted his clipboard. "I assumed you meant the others who share in this delusion - Miss Valentine, the Kaiba brothers, Yugi Mutou and his, er, brother..."

Joey smirked. "Uh-huh. Assumptions are bad, Doc, I thought you'd know that." He slid to the floor, treating the doctor to his best evil glare. "Go ahead, try to fix me. Haven't you heard 'Don't fix what isn't broken'?"

Doctor Ishika sighed inwardly. This looked to be another long session.

-----

I think there's something more

Life's worth living for

Who knows what could happen?

Do what you do

Just keep on laughing

One thing's true

There's always a brand new day

I'm gonna live today like it's my last day

-----

An hour later, Doctor Ishika sauntered toward the next patient with deep misgivings. He checked his notes from the previous day and groaned.

Seto Kaiba blinked at him when he entered the room. "Why, if it isn't Doctor Ishika," the CEO drawled. "Good to see you.

Doctor Ishika brought out the inkblots and held one up. "What does this look like to you?"

"It looks like a Rorschach inkblot test," Kaiba said with a straight face.

"I mean, personally. To you. What does it look like?"

"It looks like a Rorschach inkblot test, because that's what it is."

--

"I'm in a play and I'm missing rehearsal," Mokuba whined.

Doctor Ishika pulled out an inkblot. "What does this look like to you?"

"An inkblot test," came the immediate reply. "I get to be one of the seven dwarves. Dopey. I just feel like I'm not performing as well as I could be. I /need/ the rehearsal time, Doctor Ishika, please?"

"Mr. Kaiba - "

"Actually, rehearsal worries me," the boy rambled on. "It's the 'hearse.' Frightening."

Doctor Ishika jumped on that. "Have you had suicidal thoughts?"

"No. Have you?"

"This isn't about me, this is about you. Have you had thoughts of self-harm or suicide?"

"I tried climbing the walls," Mokuba said thoughtfully. "It didn't really work. I fell down. That hurt. But I didn't fall down on /purpose/. Is my subconscious trying to kill me?" He burst into tears.

--

"You know, I think I read somewhere that hallucinations and delusions can't be shared," Yami said thoughtfully.

Yugi shrugged. "So pull that one on Doctor Ishika."

"I think I will. He should be here soon. What time is it?"

"I don't know. There's no clock in my room."

"Nor in mine."

It was considerably less boring to be in an asylum when you had someone else always in your head.

-----

How do you always have an opinion?

And how do you always find the best way to compromise?

We don't need to have a reason

We don't need anything

We're just wasting time

-----

The Millennium Puzzle flipped onto its tip, vibrating slightly.

"Ouch," the voice said again, and there was a noise as of someone beating their fists on a wall made of metal. "Come on, let me out! You know you want to..."

The Puzzle fell over on its side, and dark smoke began to issue from the tip.

"Ah," the voice snarled, "that's...better."

--

"I really don't think the Scale's going to talk anytime soon, Ryou."

"It probably only talks when Joey's around," Ryou muttered. "Ugh. Well, the Puzzle tends to like me, we could go get it..."

Tea sighed, but didn't bother to argue. Doing /something/ was better than doing nothing, right? "Okay," she said. "Let's go. We can pick up Tristan on the way."

--

Yami was pacing when Doctor Ishika arrived.

"Hello," the doctor said warily.

"Hi," Yami said brightly.

Ishika whipped out an inkblot. "What does this look like?" he asked, without much hope.

Yami scrutinized the piece of paper. "Someone spilled some ink. I hope they didn't mess up anything important."

Ishika groaned. "No, you have to tell me what it reminds you of, what it looks like a picture of. Then I come to a conclusion based on your answer. That's how it works."

"Oh," Yami said, continuing his pacing. "In that case, it looks like trouble."

"Trouble?"

"Yes, trouble for the poor man who spilled the ink. I hope he doesn't get fired. You won't fire him, will you?"

Doctor Ishika scribbled on his notes page, 'MEMO: Get migraine medicine.' "Mr. Mutou. I don't think you comprehend - "

"I'm cured," Yami said brightly.

"People don't get cured overnight - "

"Oh, I am. I'm fine. Can't believe I was acting so crazy. If you'll give me time to get the medication out of my system, I'm sure I can provide a rationale for it. Probably I was under a lot of stress, don't you think?"

Doctor Ishika blinked. "I'm not authorized to stop your meds, and quite frankly, I wouldn't if I were. Um. You see, people really don't get cured overnight - "

"By the way," Yami said, "the inkblot? I've figured out what it looks like."

"OhthankGod," Doctor Ishika muttered. "Yes? What?"

Yami paused significantly. "A Duck," he intoned.

-----

I think there's something more

Life's worth living for

Who knows what could happen?

Do what you do

Just keep on laughing

One thing's true

There's always a brand new day

-----

"We have to get out of here," Yugi said.

Yami shrugged. "I agree, but is there any real hope of escape?"

"Actually, I think there might be. We haven't lost the powers of the Millennium Puzzle, even though it isn't physically here. Can we use that?"

"Perhaps," Yami conceded. "I could challenge Doctor Ishika to a game of Duel Monsters, with the prize being our freedom."

"That's...not how it works."

There was a lengthy pause, as they both tried to come up with a new plan.

Yugi suddenly laughed.

"What? What is it?"

"I was just thinking...if they've got surveillance on us, it's no wonder they think we're crazy. We look like we're talking to ourselves."

--

Yugi's grandfather was only too happy to let them in.

"I've missed the sound of young people around the house," he said wistfully.

"Well, with any luck, you'll have Yugi and Yami back soon," Tea said.

"I hope you're right."

The Millennium Puzzle was lying on the floor in Yugi's bedroom, looking forlorn. Tristan picked it up; its chain clinked sadly.

"It feels different," he said. "It feels...not-magical."

Ryou reached out and touched the Puzzle. "You're right. It doesn't feel like any Millennium Item I've ever come into contact with."

Tea shivered. "So whatever made it special..."

"Is gone," the boys said together.

"Maybe it's because Yugi and Yami aren't near it?" she asked.

"Ow," Ryou said suddenly, his hand flying to the back of his neck.

Tristan shuddered. "What? What now?"

"Felt like someone hit me with something. It hurt." He rubbed at his neck. "This is spooky. Something isn't right."

"No kidding, Sherlock."

"Let's get out of here," Tea said nervously.

-----

Who knows what could happen?

Do what you do

Just keep on laughing

One thing's true

There's always a brand new day

I'm gonna live today like it's my last day

-----

"Hi," the Millennium Scale said to the Millennium Puzzle as soon as the teenagers left them alone. There was no reply, so it continued, "I was waiting for you. I need your help to find my bearer. Things have got...out of control. Hello? Hello? Are you there? Hello?"

--

"The Scale still isn't talking," Ryou said two days later.

Tristan made a frustrated noise. "This is insane. Our only hope of getting our friends out of that stupid asylum is to get those things to talk. I'm not even convinced that they /can/ talk."

"Of course they can," Ryou snapped. "I wouldn't lie to you. I remember it."

"I'm just saying you could have remembered wrong!"

"Sathaugula didn't do anything to my memory, it's just playing merry hell with my body!"

"I still don't understand what this Sath-whatever thing is!"

"It's an Evil Wristwatch of Doom, okay?"

"Guys!" Tea broke in. "Stop yelling!"

They sulked.

She continued, "Ryou, have you thought of getting the Ring to talk? It likes you."

"Oh, yeah," he said, gesturing at the Ring around his neck. "Thought of that. It's not talking. Look, I think I need the Millennium Rod. I mean, if nothing else, I can always hypnotize someone into letting them out."

"That's..." Tristan exchanged a glance with Tea, and finished, "extremely unethical. And not like you."

"This is my life on the line, okay? I'm willing to take a few liberties!"

"I don't get that, either."

"Maybe you should start listening to me!" Ryou glared at Tristan, and then turned a pleading look on Tea. "Come to Egypt with me. I can't go alone, I could be caught. We'll get the Rod from Isis. She has it, right?"

"And the Necklace," Tea confirmed. "Yugi gave it back last year."

"So now you know, in case you're planning on getting all of them," Tristan muttered.

"Shut up, Tristan," Ryou said.

-----

Find yourself, 'cause I can't find you

Be yourself - who are you?

Find yourself, 'cause I can't find you

Be yourself - who are you?

-----

Doctor Ishika arrived for his appointment with Yugi Mutou to find a medical team swarming around the room.

"What's happened?" he asked.

An orderly glanced up. "He's gone into a coma, sir. Non-responsive, slow heartbeat, mumbling in what seems to be Egyptian as far as we can tell - we're preparing to move him into ICU."

"Then do it," Ishika snapped. "And since you don't seem to be busy, get some people to check on my other patients."

The doctor hurried off to check his files. The boy had been fine yesterday; what had gone wrong?

--

"You're back," Joey observed when Doctor Ishika entered. "Come to a new conclusion? Gonna slap me with a straitjacket as well?" He caught sight of the white-robed doctors behind the psychiatrist. "What's this about?"

"We're just checking on you," the doctor said, a bit too calmly. "Won't take a moment."

Joey backed up against the wall. "I've had my meds for today. You could overdose me. That's - "

"We're not giving you medication," the doctor said, and then reconsidered. He checked his clipboard. Aside from the anti-delusion meds, Joey was also supposed to be on mild sedatives, but he didn't appear to be anything other than normal. Had the medicine not kicked in yet?

Joey blinked as the other doctors shone lights in his eyes. "I don't understand - "

Doctor Ishika shook his head. "You don't need to understand, Mr. Wheeler. Take a blood sample, gentlemen."

"If you keep doing that I won't have any blood left," Joey complained. "Torture, like I keep saying. I'll have your badge for this."

"Doctors have licenses, not badges."

"Whatever."

--

"We can't go to Egypt tomorrow," Tea reported.

"Why not?" Ryou looked up from the magazine he was reading. "It's important."

"Yugi's condition is worse. He's in a coma. We can visit him."

"You. You can visit him." Ryou sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I don't get it! What's going on? This shouldn't be happening."

Tea shrugged. "I don't know, Ryou. I just wanted to let you know." She strode over to him and rested a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Yugi will be fine."

"Yeah, I know. I'm the one who's dying, and I'm stuck here."

"Well, you know they'll take you away if you go out - "

"Not stuck here, stuck /here/. In this world. I want to go back to Egypt, Tea. I hate being here, alone. I haven't been alone in my head for years." He sighed, and rubbed the back of his neck. "I miss him."

Tea wrinkled her nose. "How can you miss Bakura? He wasn't exactly nice to you."

"I don't care." He sighed again. "I'm just tired of being lonely." After a moment, he waved a hand at her. "Go, go visit Yugi. I'll keep trying to get the Millennium Items to work. It'll be fine."

Tea left, pausing to scratch Atenna behind the ears.

-----

Who knows what could happen?

Do what you do

Just keep on laughing

One thing's true

There's always a brand new day

-----

Yugi opened his eyes.

"Hi, Tea."

Tea stared at him, then at the machines monitoring his functions. "You're awake! I'll call - "

"No, don't." Yugi sat up, tugging at a few of the wires. He glared at the intravenous drip and, wincing, pulled it out. "I'm not sick. I was with Yami. We figured this was the best way to escape. How close are we to the asylum?"

"It's in the building next door, but - Yugi!" She followed him to the door, trying to ignore the insistent beeping from the machines. "They'll catch you in no time - "

"They won't be looking for me at the asylum," he pointed out. "I mean, why would I go back there?"

Tea was legitimately confused.

"But you were in a coma."

"Non-responsive, yeah. That's not hard to do. I just used the power of the Puzzle."

"But the Puzzle hasn't got any power!"

Yugi glanced back at her, then ducked into an empty room as several nurses rounded the corner. Tea, in the absence of anything else to do, kept going. As soon as the nurses passed her, she doubled back.

"What are you talking about?" Yugi asked.

"Whatever made it a Millennium Item is /gone/, Yugi. We all felt it."

"That's impossible."

"Is it?"

--

"Ryou," the Scale hissed.

The white-haired boy glanced up from the bed, where he was attempting to nap. "Oh, so you're talking now." He didn't think talking was the right word – the voice was in his head without using his ears – but it was the best he could come up with.

"I don't have a choice! What the hell's going on? Where's Joseph? What happened to the Puzzle?"

"I thought you were omnipotent or something."

"No!"

Ryou gazed thoughtfully at the Scale. "You're worried that whatever took away the Puzzle is going to take you, too."

"Not really. I'd just like to know what happened."

"Wouldn't we all," Ryou muttered. "Anyway, can you help me?"

"Help you with what?"

Ryou waved a hand at the room. "This, all this. It's a hallucination. We're still in Egypt, I'm dying, and this is a hallucination brought on by Sathaugula. Can you counteract it? Or at least tell me how much time I've got left?"

"Egypt," the Scale said flatly.

"Yes."

"We got /out/ of Egypt. Well, you did, we had to stay behind."

"No, no, no! That's not helpful at all! Why doesn't anyone understand?"

"I can't imagine," the Scale said dryly.

Ryou glared at it. "I'm going to have to fix things on my own, then."

-----

So you go and make it happen

Do your best

Just keep on laughing

I'm telling you

There's always a brand new day

-----

Atenna jumped from the floor to a chair, from the chair to the counter, and from the counter to the windowsill. She sat there for a moment, tail swishing, and then sprang out the window, landing on the ground.

She trotted through Domino City, head held regally high, and came at last to the place she knew as Home.

She slipped through the cat door and looked around, sniffing.

The house had that smell again, the smell of not being lived in. She hadn't liked it, at first, when her Master had disappeared, but then she had become used to being alone.

She ran upstairs, caught a mouse by surprise, and then carried it off and stowed it underneath her Master's bed with all the other tiny rodent skeletons.

She leapt onto the bed and curled up on the pillow, which smelled distressingly clean. Someone had put a new pillowcase on it, apparently. She growled, but then decided that it didn't matter.

She drifted off to sleep, all the while alert to the sounds of the night - sounds which might soon herald her Master's return.

--

Doctor Ishika rubbed his forehead and downed another aspirin.

"Sorry," the orderly added helplessly.

"I don't see," Doctor Ishika said, "how a patient could /escape/. Especially a patient in a coma!"

"Well, he just left."

"He was in a coma!"

"Um. We thought so, too."

The doctor got to his feet and shoved the bottle of pills back into his desk drawer. "Has anyone checked on the rest of them?"

"We're going to do so right now, sir. I thought you'd like to come with."

"Yes." Doctor Ishika grabbed his clipboard and followed the orderly. "And we're checking on his brother, first."

Something about that didn't ring right, and Doctor Ishika finally stopped. /That/ was what had always felt wrong to him. "Hang on a minute," he commanded, and ran back to his office, where he pulled the file on Yami Mutou.

He had never been able to find much information on the boy, and he had just put it down to problems with guardians and such - the two had, after all, been raised by their grandfather.

Several things clicked suddenly.

The way the two boys looked exactly alike, but there was no record of their being twins.

The way he'd heard of their talking, as if each was engaged in a conversation with someone in their head.

The way no one he'd talked to had heard of the second Mutou brother before Duelist Kingdom.

But that was crazy. Those delusions about the game being real and ancient Egypt and everything - that was /madness/.

Doctor Ishika knew perfectly well that delusions weren't contagious, but what other explanation was there? Unless he was going insane entirely on his own?

No. Curiosity didn't make a person crazy, it just made them – curious.

"Let's go," he snapped, and the orderly had to run to keep up.

--

Who knows what could happen?

Do what you do

Just keep on laughing

One thing's true

There's always a brand new day

I'm gonna live today like it's my last day

-----

Author's Notes: "Who Knows" is by Avril Lavigne. I chose it for this chapter because, aside from being appropriate at times, I think it provides an interesting contrast to the material of the chapter, which is dark, to say the least.

Next Chapter: On Fire. Escapes, reunions, mysteries, politics, cats, and not many answers to the questions. (Can you blame me? It's early yet.)


	3. On Fire

Chapter Three: On Fire

As soon as Tea's mother left for work, Ryou slipped downstairs and sprawled on the couch to watch TV.

He took the Millennium Scale with him.

"And this is...fun?" it finally said.

"Yeah. See, they think he's dead, but really he's just kidnapped again, and - "

"I do not see the attraction."

Ryou sighed and changed the channel. "It's interesting, really. You just need to watch from the beginning." There was a game show on; he started channel-surfing. News, news, reality show, commercial, news again, anime...

"Wait," the Scale commanded. "Go back."

Ryou shrugged and went back.

"...is not expected to survive. The Egyptian People's Assembly have met to discuss impeachment of President Ghobirah, who is in solitary confinement at Calumet Prison in Cairo. Comments from Vice President Adyar are not forthcoming."

Ryou stared at the images that flickered across the screen. "What did he do?"

"I believe," the Scale said, far too calmly, "that the President of Egypt may have just killed the Chief of Staff."

--

Yami was waiting by the door of his cell when Tea and Yugi arrived. The door was only bolted shut, and they were soon on their way to find the others.

"And you say the Puzzle has lost its power?" Yami said suspiciously. "I don't see how that's possible."

"It's just a piece of somewhat tacky jewelry," Tea confirmed. "Ryou said so, and he's got a Millennium Item of his own, so he should know."

Yami's brow furrowed. "Ryou called it tacky?"

"Oh, no, _I_ called it tacky."

--

Vice President Adyar of Egypt sat at his desk at home, swivelling back and forth.

He'd been called to the hospital, of course, where the rest of the cabinet had convened, but he didn't feel quite ready to leave yet.

His personal assistant had, at his request, begun to email him all the information he could find, including President Ghobirah's psychological reports.

What could make a man so mild-mannered and innocent commit a murder so atrocious? Although, Adyar had to remind himself, it wasn't murder until al-Othman was dead.

Ghobirah was, Adyar had always thought, a nerd. He wore thick glasses and spoke English well, but with a lisp. He was deferential - very strange in a political leader - and got excited every time there was news from an archaeological dig.

He'd been on a few, as well, before he'd been elected.

Adyar was a stronger leader, but he didn't like the Shura. He wanted to have more power as President, and as such had always been unpopular with the senators.

At any moment, Adyar expected to receive news that the People's Assembly had impeached Ghobirah, and that he, Adyar, was now President. So far, nothing was forthcoming.

It was all too fast, he thought. Ghobirah hadn't even been formally accused and already they were getting rid of him...

Things had been going wrong for the administration, it was true. All those mysterious events at the Museum, the plummeting economy, the ever-looming threat of terrorist attacks...it was not a good time to be in charge. It would be easy for the people to believe that Ghobirah had cracked.

It was just that Adyar didn't believe it.

_Maybe Ghobirah didn't do it_, Adyar thought. _Maybe he was framed._

_Just please, please don't let me be forced to take over this country. Not now._

-----

They tell you where you need to go

They tell you when you need to leave

They tell you what you need to know

They tell you who you need to be

-----

They found Kaiba next.

Yugi noted the gleam of joy that lit Kaiba's eyes at first, and also noticed how suddenly it faded, how quickly the CEO got hold of himself and straightened up.

"Come to break me out, then?"

"We're breaking everyone out," Yami said. "Don't feel special."

"Who's everyone?"

"Mai, Joey, and Mokuba," Tea said. "They didn't ever get Ryou."

Kaiba was out the door in an instant. "They locked Mokuba in this place? That doctor...he never said! I'll wring his scrawny little neck! Come on!"

--

Ryou watched the news, open-mouthed, the words entering his ears and turning immediately to slush.

"Chief of Staff Abdul al-Othman was attacked and critically injured early this morning by President Omar Ghobirah...still awaiting comment by Vice President Adyar...no news from the People's Assembly...not expected to live through the night...impeachment certain..."

The interviews he really listened to were divided.

"President Ghobirah? No, he's a good man, a very good man, he would never do this. I won't believe it."

"It's Revolution Day," one woman wailed. "How could he do this on Revolution Day?"

July 23, Ryou noted clinically. That solved the problem of what day it was.

"Abdul was wonderful, his murderer should be killed immediately."

"Ghobirah and al-Othman were best friends, you said so last week. Were you exaggerating? Hmm? I hate reporters. Get away from me."

"You are not in possession of all the facts."

"Do I know her?"

That was the Millennium Scale. Ryou glanced at it, then back up, but the reporter had moved on. He had recognized the voice, though.

"Probably. She's Isis Ishtar, bearer of the Millennium Necklace. You met her brother's yami in Egypt."

"Where is this Isis Ishtar?"

"In Cairo, of course. She works for the Egyptian Museum. I think she's curator, actually."

"Then we must go to Cairo," it said decisively. "Did you hear how she spoke? She knows something. She has seen something."

Ryou shook his head. "The Necklace doesn't work anymore. She can't have."

"I did not," the Scale said coldly, "say that she had seen something magically."

--

Mokuba flew into Kaiba's arms the moment they opened the door. "Seto!"

"Are you all right? Did they hurt you?" Kaiba asked.

"No, not really. I mean, they made me take medicine, but I'm fine now."

"Could have killed you," Kaiba muttered. He glanced up at Yugi. "Now what? To the puppy?"

"Stop calling Joey that," Tea snapped. "He's a good person, which you would see if you could get over this hatred you have for us."

Kaiba rolled his eyes. "I don't _hate_ you. I just think that your idea of a plan is 'One, two, three, charge,' which is a damn stupid way to go about saving the world, as you so often do."

"It works."

Kaiba sneered. "Oh, it works. That's an excuse for sloppy workmanship, is it? If you worked for me, I'd fire you."

"Well, I don't, so you can just be quiet, Seto Kaiba!"

-----

But everything inside you knows

There's more than what you've heard

There's so much more than empty conversations

Filled with empty words

-----

"You think Isis witnessed the murder?"

"You were not watching. You did not see the look in her eyes. She is haunted. She knows great and terrible things."

"Come to that, we all know great and terrible things. Isis isn't a special case." Ryou shook his head and glared at the Scale. "Anyway, how could _you_ have been watching? You don't have eyes."

"I do so. Eye of Ra. Look."

"It's not a real eye. It's just made of gold."

"Copper, actually, covered in gold." The Millennium Scale apparently saw Ryou's incredulous look, and said, a shade defensively, "Gold doesn't grow on trees, you know."

"But we've seen the Puzzle broken! It's all gold!"

"Ah, well, the Puzzle," the Scale said. "Pharaohs can never be content with doing their tombs up halfway, you know."

--

Adyar stared at his email inbox, unseeing.

The latest message had been short:

"_Come to the hospital now. Al-Othman is dying._"

Adyar had no desire to be around when al-Othman died. Going out in public would mean statements and hedging, and if he was there, doubtless he would be forced to deliver the news of the death.

If Ghobirah was an unlikely murderer, Abdul al-Othman was an even more unlikely victim. For a Chief of Staff, the man was far too happy. He verged on bubbly on his worse days. He had never done anything to anyone.

Perhaps, Adyar thought, a dweeby President and a pushover Chief of Staff were exactly why Egypt had been allowed to sink into such dire straits.

He hit the reply button and began to type.

"_I dare not leave the house. If Ghobirah is innocent, I could be the next target. Please convey my apologies. Also, send me the curator of the Egyptian Museum._"

Moments later, his assistant replied.

"_It is duly conveyed. I will attempt to raise Miss Ishtar on the telephone, but I cannot promise anything - the media is looking for a way to tie the murder to all those break-ins._"

Of course. The damn media.

Then again, they wanted exactly what Adyar wanted...

"_Please get me the nearest journalist, then. But just one. I don't appreciate being mobbed._"

Again, the reply was quick.

"_All right, but you should know that it will be difficult. They run in packs. Oh, and the United Nations is pushing for a statement. Are you going to tell the media anything?_"

Adyar considered, and then typed a careful answer.

"_That depends on who you get._"

--

Once Mai and Joey had joined them, the group hid out in an unused wing of the asylum. They could hear distant sounds, as of many people rushing about.

"Where are we going to go?" Yugi asked.

"Back to my house," Tea replied. "That's where Ryou is."

Kaiba shrugged. "I don't care where _you_ go. Mokuba and I are going to KaibaCorp to get a private jet."

Mokuba stared at his brother with wide, frightened eyes, although his expression was difficult to see in the dim light. "We can't use our money to run away forever, Seto."

"I know. But we can run away now, and that's what counts." Kaiba gazed haughtily at the others. "You're all welcome to join us," he added grudgingly.

"No," Yami said. "We have too much to do here. We must find out what is wrong with the Millennium Puzzle."

"Suit yourself," Kaiba said, and started to walk away.

"Seto," Mokuba yelled, chasing after his brother. "This isn't right."

"I never said it was right, did I? But it's what we're doing. Come on."

Mokuba, with a final glance back at the others, followed Kaiba out the door at the end of the hallway.

"Anyway," Joey said after a moment, "we can't stay at your place forever, Tea. Don't you think your mother will notice?"

"She hasn't noticed Ryou."

"She'll notice four more people, though."

"Besides," Mai said, "I can't be in the same house as Ryou."

Joey groaned and buried his face in his hands. "Mai, you can't avoid Ryou forever. For all he looks like Bakura, he's _not_ Bakura, and he's never going to be. You were fine with it before."

"That was then," she said. "Hurry up and make a decision. I won't stay where he is."

"Okay," Yugi said in a placating tone. "You don't have to stay. But come back with us. It will be safer to plan there, anyway."

After a long silence, Mai said, "Fine."

They headed for the door Kaiba had gone through.

Light flooded the corridor.

"Requesting backup in the East Wing," a voice said smugly. "That's right...we found 'em."

-----

You're on fire when he's near you

You're on fire when he speaks

You're on fire, burning at these mysteries

-----

"Couldn't reach Isis," Adyar's assistant said when he arrived. "But I found /her/. She's new to the news station, and she says she knows Isis."

The pretty girl stared impassively at Adyar. "You are the pharaoh's second in command?"

"Yes," he said, rolling his eyes. Great. A loony. And her accent was strange, too. "Miss..."

"Zahara," she said, hesitating for a fraction of a second. "Zahara...al-Nephthys. Yes. That will do."

"Miss Nephthys," Adyar said grudgingly. "I need to speak to Isis Ishtar, but my assistant and I are well-known to the media. Can you get her a message?"

"That depends," the girl said, "on what the message is."

--

Doctor Ishika strode to the front of the pack of doctors and security guards.

"I don't know how you managed this," he snapped, "but it ends now. Surrender."

"I'm sure it can't be normal for a psychiatrist to tell his patients to surrender," Mai noted. "You _are _working for someone."

"On the contrary, Miss Valentine, I..." He trailed off. "I don't know why I said that, in fact. I didn't mean it. I peacefully back to your rooms. I will have them shoot if you try to run away."

"We're not dangerous," Joey said. "You could lose your badge if you shoot people like us."

"It's a license!" Ishika yelled. "Not a badge!"

Tea surveyed the situation. The psychiatrist was flanked by three more doctors, two of them armed with hypodermic needles, and by four security guards. Only two of them had their sidearms out, and she noticed that they hadn't cocked them yet - still hoping for a peaceful solution?

Yugi and Yami exchanged glances. Yugi leaned over to Mai and whispered something, then collapsed.

Tea shrieked and jumped away from him before she could process it. His purple eyes were wide open and yet unseeing as he arched back and gurgled a bit.

"He's faking," Doctor Ishika said, flinging out his arm to prevent one of the doctors from moving forward.

Mai glared at him. "You idiot! Help him!"

The guards looked uncertain; Tea saw one of the doctors nod at them. Two of them strode past Doctor Ishika. "Don't," the psychiatrist shrieked. "It's all a plot - they're trying to escape - they can't be allowed - "

One doctor jabbed his arm with a needle as another ran past and knelt beside Yugi.

Tea wasn't sure what happened next - everyone moved so fast. One of the guards and the doctor with the needle grabbed Doctor Ishika as he slumped. Mai and Yami dove forward. There was a gunshot, and suddenly Yugi jerked into a sitting position and punched one of the doctors, then yelped as the needle pricked his arm.

As the noise died down, Tea stared at her friends. Mai had one of the guards' guns, and was pointing it at him; Yami was clutching at his shoulder. The guards by Yugi backed away from the now-unconscious boy, reaching for their own sidearms.

"Don't move," Mai snapped. "I took a class at the police academy. I can actually shoot this thing. Joey, Tea, grab Yugi and go. We'll be right behind you."

--

Ryou shook his head and stood up. "I'm not going to watch anymore."

"Where do you think the Vice President is?" the Scale asked.

"I don't care." He headed for the kitchen; it was about time he ate something, though he didn't really feel hungry.

"Ryou," the Scale yelled.

"I'm making a sandwich," he yelled back. "Want one?"

"Oh, funny. You're funny. Get back in here."

Ryou brought the Scale into the kitchen and glared at it. "Can I make my sandwich?"

"Oh, sure. I just wanted to ask - what are you doing here? This isn't your house. I can get that much from the Ring."

Ryou touched the Ring around his neck. "Oh, it'll talk to you?"

"We all talk to each other."

Ryou could tell, somehow, that it was staring at him in curiosity. "I can't go home," he said, laying out two pieces of bread and reaching for the peanut butter. "There are bad people who want to take me away, and I don't want to go."

"Will your family not protect you?"

"I don't have a family." Ryou jabbed the knife into the peanut butter harder than necessary, and began to spread it on the bread. "My father's on a dig in Egypt, and you know what happened to my yami."

"You consider your dark side to be family?"

"Well, yes. He's like an annoying older brother."

"I find that very interesting." The Scale observed the sandwich. "Does that taste good?"

"I guess," Ryou said.

"And do you want him back? Your dark side?"

"Yes."

"How badly?"

"With all my soul."

The Scale was silent, and then said, in a tone devoid of emotion, "Knowing what you do of Egyptian magic, don't you think that that is a silly thing to say?"

-----

Give me one more time around

Give me one more chance to see

Give me everything you are

Give me one more chance to be near you

-----

Adyar sat in his swivelling chair, fingers steepled, and stared at the screen as more and more reports came in from all over the world.

The world was worried.

Usually, the world paid little attention to modern Egypt. As a republic, it was "safe" for freedom; its ancient history was more interesting than its recent past. In fact, more people probably knew about new artifacts than about new Presidents. And while they were members of the UN - had been since the beginning - the world rarely heard about the opinion of Egypt. People cared about what the United Kingdom, America, Russia, China did - Egypt was just a little country somewhere in Africa with a river that flowed the wrong way.

Ghobirah had been a safe President. He didn't have radical opinions, he wasn't likely to go to war without provocation. He was a _dork_.

To learn that he had gone mad and murdered his Chief of Staff...

The world didn't know what to think.

Adyar didn't know what to think either.

The email came from his assistant at noon.

"_Al-Othman is dead. The People's Assembly have impeached Ghobirah. The Shura wishes to speak with you immediately._"

_Too fast_. It was all too fast. Something wasn't right.

Adyar sighed and turned off his computer. As President, his first act couldn't be to ignore the Shura.

--

Ryou's friends came staggering in at five, Yugi being carried between Joey and Mai. Yami clutched at his shoulder.

"Bastard shot me," the pharaoh said, sounding dazed.

"Yes," Tea said, and shouted, "Ryou, get the First Aid kit and a lot of gauze!"

Laying Yugi on the couch, Joey and Mai glanced at the TV. "I didn't know he liked watching the news," Mai remarked.

Joey crowed in delight and grabbed his Scale from where it was sitting on the coffee table. "I missed you," he told it.

"It's an inanimate object," Mai informed him, and turned to Yami. "You're sure it's okay?"

"It looks worse than it is," he said. "The bullet barely grazed me. Where is Ryou?"

The white-haired boy dashed down the stairs, the First Aid kit swinging from one hand and a roll of gauze in the other. "Why, what happened - you're bleeding, Pharaoh."

"I noticed," Yami said dryly, half-collapsing onto a chair.

"We can't stay here long," Mai said. "After that performance, they'll consider us insane _and_ dangerous."

"What happened to Yugi?" Ryou asked.

"Sedatives," Joey replied. "He'll be fine. This is my Scale."

"Oh, yes. About that..."

--

Shadi padded down the corridor to Isis Ishtar's office.

The woman was on the phone when he arrived. "Yes, I am aware. Yes, thank you. No, the Museum will be closed tomorrow in mourning, I'm sorry. Yes. No, you go ahead." She hung up and grinned at Shadi. "Donator. Wants to give us a rare artifact to commemorate the late Chief of Staff. Did you hear about that?"

"I heard," Shadi said. "Isis, I am here to ask you if there is any sign of the Millennium Items."

She shook her head. "No. The Scale and the Rod are still missing. I've taken the Key and the Necklace off display - they're locked in the cellar. The Ring and the Puzzle are in Japan, and as you well know, we've had no sign of the Millennium Eye since Duelist Kingdom."

"That is not good," Shadi said. "Have you heard from your brother?"

"Not really. Why?"

Shadi hesitated, then said, "We must face the very real possibility that it was Malik who stole the Rod. Everyone agrees that Ghobirah would never have killed al-Othman - "

"Are you suggesting that my brother took over the President's mind and murdered the Chief of Staff?"

"I am suggesting," Shadi said, "that there is more to this than there seems to be."

-----

When everything inside me

Looks like everything I hate

You are the hope I have for change

You are the only chance I'll take

-----

"Where are we going to go?" Mai demanded.

"My house," Joey said. "I have to tell Serenity I'm okay."

"And after that? Hmm?" Receiving no answer, she turned to Yami. "How much money can you borrow from your - Yugi's - grandfather?"

"As much as we need," Yami said.

"Can we get plane tickets and go to Egypt or something?"

"I doubt it," Joey said. "They'll have alerted the authorities at the airport."

"And I don't think we want to be in Egypt just now," Ryou said. "Things have gone very bad."

--

Isis glanced up when someone knocked on the door. "Enter."

The girl who called herself Zahara came in. "President Adyar has sent me to you. He wishes to know your opinion on something."

"What?"

"He wishes to know if you think that the events at the Museum are tied to the murder of Abdul al-Othman."

Isis considered, then said slowly, "I do."

"I will tell him." The girl hesitated. "Miss Ishtar?"

"Yes?"

"What are these events that he speaks of?"

Isis shrugged. "Break-ins, thefts, vandalism. Some guards complaining that they hear noises in the night."

"And what can this have to do with the murder?"

"I can't tell you that."

The girl nodded and left. Isis sat back in her chair and tapped a pencil thoughtfully against her lips.

That _accent_. It was like none Isis had ever heard.

Where was that girl from?

--

Atenna woke when she heard something, and padded to the stairs.

The front door swung open with a creak, admitting several men with flashlights.

"What are we looking for?"

"Anything that can tell us where the kid's gone."

Atenna streaked down the stairs and past the men, stopping to scratch one of them, who cursed.

"What was that?"

"Kid's got a cat. See the cat door?"

"I hate cats."

"Get on with it!"

-----

And I'm on fire when you're near me

I'm on fire when you speak

I'm on fire, burning at these mysteries

I'm standing on the edge of me

I'm standing on the edge of me

I'm standing on the edge of everything I've never been before

-----

Mai sat on Tea's bed, dragging a borrowed brush through her hair and longing for home.

Of course it wasn't safe to go home, she knew that. But still - she hated being here, with everyone arguing and nothing getting done.

The door swung open, and Ryou entered. Mai nodded coolly at him and averted her eyes. _I'm never going to get over him_, she thought, and was glad that her friendship with Ryou had never been strong to begin with. To lose a lover and a friend in one go...how terrible.

"Hi," Ryou said, shutting the door behind him. "How're you?"

"Probably going into withdrawal from the meds. You?"

"All right, I guess."

She put the brush down and stared at the poster on the wall, although the tears in her eyes prevented her from seeing what it was a poster of. "Do you miss him?" she asked.

"Who?"

She glanced over at Ryou, and jumped when she saw that he was standing right beside her. "Your yami, of course."

"Why would I miss him?" he whispered, and kissed her.

-----

And I've been standing on the edge of me

Standing on the edge and

I'm on fire when you're near me

I'm on fire when you speak

I'm on fire, burning at these mysteries

-----

Author's Notes: All the Egyptian politicians in this chapter are figments of my imagination. Any resemblance to real political figures is unintentional. If I got my facts wrong, I'm terribly sorry. The Shura, by the way, is the Egyptian Senate-type thing. Advisors to the President.

Oh, and in case anyone's wondering, one of the few spoilers I don't have is how Battle City ends. So I will be making some assumptions here which are, in all probability, wrong. One of these is, of course, that Malik survived.

The song is "On Fire" by Switchfoot.

Next Chapter: Meant to Live. Arguments, painful memories, a kidnapping, and mistaken identity. /Badly/ mistaken identity, in fact.


	4. Meant to Live

Chapter Four: Meant to Live

-

Fumbling his confidence and wondering why the world has passed him by

Hoping that he's bent for more than arguments and failed attempts to fly, fly

-

It wasn't a _bad _kiss, Mai noted clinically, later on. Ryou's lips were soft and warm, and he was surprisingly bold. He rested a hand gently on her hair and pulled her closer. It took a few seconds for her to recover, and then she shoved him away and shrieked, "What the hell, Ryou?"

"I wanted to see what it felt like," he said, smirking. She waved the brush threateningly in his direction.

"You _know_ how I feel about that!"

"Apparently you are very receptive to that, Miss Valentine."

She squinted at him, saw the sardonic twist to his lips and the weird glow in his eyes. "What?"

"Where is the Millennium Eye?"

"It's at home, I don't - Ryou, what's going on?"

He waved a hand dismissively. "Oh, many things, many things. The problem is, you see, that without the Eye I cannot know what is truly happening in Egypt. It would be well if we knew, Miss Valentine. Surely you can agree with that?"

She said "What?" again, because there didn't seem to be anything else to say.

Ryou sighed in frustration and leaned against the closed door, arms folded across his chest. "The power is draining from the Millennium Items," he said, in the condescending tone generally used with children and the exceptionally stupid. "I must know why, and for that I need Isis and Shadi. Unfortunately, they will be...unwilling...to simply tell me what we need to know. We must have the Eye!"

"What's happened to you?" Mai whispered.

"The Puzzle is dead," he said simply. "That is all you need to know. Take us to your house, Miss Valentine. We will retrieve the Millennium Eye, and we will restore the Items. It must be done. As I carry the only remaining Egyptian spirit, it must be done by _us_."

"No, you don't," Mai said.

Ryou laughed coldly. "You refer to the pharaoh? He has no power without the Puzzle. He is, for the first time, mortal."

"I meant, _you_ don't have a spirit anymore."

He cocked his head to the side. "What are you talking about?"

Mai fiddled with the brush. "Because...oh, God, Ryou, you were there, you know what happened! You've been a few bricks short of a load since we got back, but denial? That's a bit much." _And kissing me is, too_, she thought, but that particular discussion could probably wait until he was back to his usual polite self.

"You are referring to the time-traveling demon watch? But that was all a hallucination."

"Ryou, I have spent the last few weeks in a mental institution with people trying to convince me that what happened in Egypt was a hallucination. I don't need you doing it, too. Just _wake up_. He's not coming back."

"I could come back," Ryou said distantly. He tilted his head up and stared at the ceiling. "We could come back..."

When he looked at her again, there was something in his eyes that hadn't been there before. A darkness, a shadow.

"I'm _back_."

-

Joey hung up the phone and crossed the room to sit in a chair.

"How's Serenity?" Tea asked.

"She's fine. I told her I can't call again because they might have the phones tapped, and she called me paranoid."

Tea tapped her foot on the floor, then said timidly, "You don't think it's possible that the doctors were right?"

"Of course not! I'd know if I was crazy!"

Tea nodded and glanced at the digital clock on top of the TV. "My mother will be home in an hour. What are we going to do?"

Joey glanced over at Yami, who was sitting in a corner with the Puzzle in his lap. His eyes were glazed over, and he whispered to it in Egyptian.

"I don't know," Joey said. "I don't know. Things are so wrong..."

-

Mokuba sat down at the back of the jet and slumped in his seat, glaring at his brother through narrowed eyes.

"I don't think it's right to abandon them, Seto."

Kaiba rolled his eyes and leaned into the cockpit. "We'll go to San Francisco for now, pilot."

"Seto - "

"I _know_, Mokuba." Kaiba pulled the cockpit door shut a bit harder than necessary. "You keep saying that. What do you want me to do?"

"Call them. Bring them with us."

"I don't know where they are."

"Then _find them_."

"It's not like we're friends - "

"It's not like we're enemies! _Please_, Seto."

Kaiba hesitated, his hand hovering near the door handle, and then he sat down and gazed coolly at Mokuba.

"You can't have everything you want."

-

We were meant to live for so much more

Have we lost ourselves?

Somewhere we live inside, somewhere we live inside

We were meant to live for so much more

Have we lost ourselves?

Somewhere we live inside

-

"You will take us to your house," Ryou said. "We will get the Millennium Eye."

Mai backed away, glancing around for help of any kind - but he was between her and the door, and the brush was the only sort-of weapon nearby. "Let me get Yami Yugi," she said gently. "He'll figure out what's wrong with you - "

"There is nothing wrong with me!" he shouted. "We will find your house ourselves, and you _will not stop us_!"

He wrenched the door open and ran.

Mai gaped after him for a moment, and then followed.

-

Adyar stood outside the cell with his hands in his pockets, head bowed. His assistant hovered behind him.

The guard opened the door and stepped inside, gun held ready. There was a derisive laugh from within the cell. Adyar steeled himself and went in.

"Ah, Jalal," ex-President Ghobirah said. "It is a joy to see you."

"You too, Omar."

"They took my glasses. They think I will try to kill myself, and so evade justice. I did not murder him, Jalal."

"I don't think you did."

"You will be President?"

"Yes."

"Then you will pardon me?"

Adyar hesitated, then said, very carefully, "I do not think it is conducive to government affairs to pardon a man for a murder he may have committed."

Ghobirah laughed again, and waved a hand at the guard. "They think I did it. You do, too."

"I don't!"

"So friendship means nothing to you?"

"Friendship means everything."

"Will I be executed, Jalal?"

Adyar glanced back at his assistant, who was dutifully transcribing the conversation in hieratic. "Possibly."

"I am afraid of death."

"I think that everyone is afraid of death."

-

Less than ten miles away, in an underground room lit by wavering candles, sat a man who was afraid of death.

"You will find the Millennium Items. You will bring them to me. I will be immortal."

There was no question in that voice, nor command. It was a simple statement of what would be.

The alternative was too horrible to consider.

-

Dreaming about providence and whether mice and men have second tries

Maybe we've been living with our eyes half-open

Maybe we're bent and broken, broken

-

Yugi had just regained consciousness and was endeavoring to wring the story of what had happened out of Joey when Ryou clattered down the stairs, threw open the back door, and ran into the night.

"That was odd," Tea said.

A moment later, Mai dashed down the stairs, tripped over the last one, caught at the banister, and gasped, "Ryou's possessed by something scary and evil!"

Everyone stared.

Then Joey said, "What, again?"

-

Isis had not remained in contact with her brother after the affair in Battle City, and it was the work of several hours to locate him, living in an apartment building in one of the worse neighborhoods of Cairo.

Children played in the streets, dust-covered and laughing. They stared at the well-dressed woman picking her way along, then returned to their games. There were no adults; it was early in the afternoon, and they would all be working, trying to feed their families.

"Does Malik Ishtar live here?" Isis asked a man outside the address she had found.

He shrugged. "Dunno anyone by that name. Know everybody by sight, though."

"Malik's blond," Isis said, "with very pale eyes, and - "

"Oh, him," the man said dismissively. "Yeah, he's a weird one, off at all hours of day and night doing who-knows-what. I don't know why he lives here - he must be rich enough to stay someplace better. He's got education."

"Is he home now?"

"Nope. He ran off the day al-Othman died. I haven't seen him since." The man squinted at her. "Is he in trouble?"

"I hope not," Isis said. She thanked him and left, casting a backward glance at the building.

Odd, that Malik had vanished on the day of the Chief of Staff's murder...

Isis had to face the very real possibility that her brother had just become the prime suspect in al-Othman's death.

Next to the ex-President, of course.

-

We were meant to live for so much more

Have we lost ourselves?

Somewhere we live inside, somewhere we live inside

We were meant to live for so much more

Have we lost ourselves?

Somewhere we live inside

-

"What are we going to do?" Yugi asked, feeling a bit helpless. "The Puzzle is broken, Ryou's...possessed or something, and we're wanted. We have nowhere to go, and we can't trust anyone but each other."

Yami looked up from his scrutiny of the Puzzle. "There's no help for it. We'll have to find Ryou and go to Egypt."

"It's chaos there," Joey pointed out. "But, yeah, I guess it's safer than here."

"Ryou," Mai snapped impatiently. "We have to help Ryou!"

Tea nodded. "Right. Okay. I'll go to your grandfather's, Yugi, and get the plane fare for all of us. Joey, call Tristan and tell him what's happening. Yugi, go with Mai. Yami, keep trying to figure out the Millennium Items."

Joey stared at her. "I love you when you're forceful," he said.

"Are you sure you want to come with us?" Yugi asked. "It could be dangerous."

"It's always been dangerous, and Tristan and I have always been there for you guys. You can't keep us away." She smiled, then grabbed a coat. "Oh - and find out when the next plane leaves. We'll have to time it very carefully so we don't get caught."

Mai practically dragged Yugi out the door. Tea left a moment later. Joey sank onto the couch and picked up the Scale.

"I don't understand how all this happened," Yami said softly. "And the Puzzle - it just isn't _there_. I can't...hear it. I can't get into it. I don't...gods. If the Puzzle's magic is gone, then what am I?"

-

Atenna returned eventually to find the intruders gone. She slept on her Master's bed, and woke at the tinkle of glass someone on the first floor.

She padded to the stairs and peered down at the living room, where several men in dark clothes were methodically turning over the furniture, as if looking for something.

The cat yawned. Well, she would just have to treat them like she'd treated the last group who invaded her Master's territory.

She was extremely surprised when the first man she attacked, instead of screaming and cursing, plucked her off his leg and threw her into the wall. She slid to the floor with a yowl, and sprang back into the fight.

"Here, kitty kitty," one of them said, snatching her up and shoving her into a sack. "Kid loves this cat. Could be bait."

"I don't think he's here," someone else said.

"Doesn't matter. We can wait. He will be."

-

We want more than this world's got to offer

We want more than this world's got to offer

We want more than the wars of our fathers

And everything inside screams for second life

-

Omar Ghobirah, who had once been the President of Egypt, sat in the middle of his cell and tried to think.

It had happened so fast, too fast. He had been working, and then it was all a blur, but he had come to in his office covered in blood, and someone was screaming in the hall, and when he staggered out al-Othman was dying, shrieking over and over, "Omar! Omar! You have murdered me!"

But Ghobirah was certain...almost certain...that he _hadn't_.

And afterwards, the impeachment, the imprisonment...it was so surreal. It wasn't supposed to happen so _fast_.

He wished that Adyar had stayed longer.

Without human company, he was going insane.

If he wasn't insane already, having apparently forgotten committing a murder.

-

The white-haired boy stormed into the house, preoccupied, and didn't notice for a moment that the window beside the door was broken. Glass crunched under his feet. "Oh, what _now_?" he muttered, squinting into the dark living room.

It was as if a hurricane had torn the place apart. No piece of furniture was upright; the TV had been broken. There was a cat meowing somewhere nearby.

He wandered into the kitchen. Someone had raided the refrigerator; the contents were strewn about the floor. Ryou narrowly missed banging his head on a cupboard door.

He returned to the living room, biting his lip. Ordinary burglars? Or something worse? He considered leaving, then stopped.

He had to get the Eye. That meant knowing where Mai lived. There had to be an address book somewhere...

That cat was _really_ annoying.

He found it in a sack under an upturned chair and let the cat out. It hissed and stared at something behind him.

Hands grabbed him, covered his mouth. Fingers twined in his hair and tugged sharply. "Be still, Ryou Bakura," someone whispered. "This won't take but a moment."

He struggled, of course, and he was vaguely aware that the cat was scratching people, and then someone took hold of his wrist and buckled a watch to it.

His captors let go.

He stood shakily, glaring at them. There weren't more than half a dozen, all staring at the watch. "What the hell?" he demanded. "I don't under - "

The intruders watched as the boy fell silent, eyes closing. One had the presence of mind to catch him when he collapsed.

"Unconscious?"

"Yeah."

"Better make sure. Could be faking."

One of them grabbed the cat and dropped it on Ryou's chest. He didn't react. "Good show. Easier than I thought it would be."

Atenna leapt to the floor and stared at them with luminous eyes, then made a dash for the door. An intruder caught her and held her at arm's length. "What do we do with the cat?"

"It's a _cat_. Leave it alone." The man reluctantly dropped Atenna, who looked around thoughtfully, then fled.

"Does he have the Ring?"

"Yeah, he's wearing it."

"And the Eye?"

They searched his pockets. "Nope."

"Damn. Kid must have a good hiding place."

"We'll find it. For now, let's just get the kid to Egypt. We can always come back. Not like we have to pay for our own tickets."

There was silence.

"Stop trying to be funny. You can't pull it off."

"Yeah, okay."

-

We were meant to live for so much more

Have we lost ourselves?

We were meant to live for so much more

Have we lost ourselves?

We were meant to live for so much more

Have we lost ourselves?

We were meant to live

We were meant to live

-

Author's Notes: Okay, here's something I've (finally) noticed. People came into this trilogy with the excessively fluffy "Let Go." Which means you're all expecting more fluff, and I keep churning out angst. For this I am sorry.

However, what I think I should make clear is that while this is a trilogy, "Fallen" and "Behind the Eyes" are like two halves of one story, while "Let Go" is backstory. So while it is understandable that you are all thirsting for more romance and comedy and, in short, happiness, what you can expect is what you've been getting. Please don't run away screaming, because there /will/ be happy moments! There will be romance! There might even be the ever-elusive humor! But the angst will remain, and will continue getting worse right up until the end, which will be more or less happy, I hope.

So, um, I'm dreadfully sorry about the angst. Just stick with it, and I can promise a two- or three-chapter interlude of joy sooner or later.

That said, oh, my God, I hadn't realised how long it had been since I last updated. I am _so_ sorry. I hope it was worth the wait.

Next Chapter: Fugitive. Mysterious factions in Egypt seek to influence the government, plans fall apart, and we learn just what a "mental catfight" is.


End file.
